Lake Garzon is getting its new Bridge!

A new Bridge for Lake Garzon

Connecting the departments Maldonado and Rocha

New Bridge Lake Garzon in Rocha, Uruguay

Eduardo Costantini, a partner of the government in the construction of the bridge over the Laguna Garzon and owner of the area of Las Garzas chose last week the company that will built the bridge over the lake Garzon. The project also has the approval of the architect Rafael Viñoly who designed the bridge.

The company was selected based on the agreement that the owner of Las Garzas, Argentine businessman Eduardo Constantini is responsible for the costs of the bridge Garzon, which will cost $10 million dollars.

This project will replace the current system of rafts that connects Maldonado to Rocha. This raft is very picturesque but only allows 2 cars at a time . The raft is open at certain times and closed during windy or stormy days. This has kept the region of Rocha away from further developments compared to what Maldonado has been experiencing in the last decades.

The Bridge

Architect Vinoly presented a model of a bridge that solved the controversy over whether it was appropriate to build over lake Garzon, designing a bridge that will be part of the lake and minimizing the environmental and visual impact of the bridge.

The bridge Garzon will be made of 22 wooden rafts made of aluminum and fiberglass which will allow to change the shape of the bridge. The structure will be circular (leaving a gap in the middle) or representing a winding road. It is intended to be part of the lake and designed not to affect the environment.

Architect Rafael Vinoly, Uruguay

Vinoly ‘s intention is to generate “public participation” over this very unique model. In fact, the bridge itself is an attraction since there are no similar models in the world such as this one.

Impact of the Bridge

There has been a big controversy whether the bridge will affect the protected area east of the lake Garzon and the flow of the water course of the lake.

Since the beginning the people living in Jose Ignacio considered the building of the bridge Garzon on Route 10 east as a mistake, that will bring ecological, economic and cultural consequences. They valued the contribution of the investment of Las Garzas , but considered that the interconnection of the two shores would bring heavy traffic to the region and would affect the sustainable development that characterizes and defines the area of Garzon and Jose Ignacio. They insisted that the construction of the bridge will directly affect Jose Ignacio. The sea is dangerous on the east of lake Garzon and therefore people will go to the beaches of Jose Ignacio affecting the local capacity of the small village.

However, several surveys showed that a large majority of residents of Rocha and Maldonado were in favor of the project. 81% of residents Rocha and 64% of residents in Maldonado spoke positively about the bridge as well the governments of both regions, since the construction of the bridge will contribute to the real estate development in the area.

The Laguna Garzon will integrate the National System of Protected Areas so as to preserve, even with the impact we all know, the ecosystems that exist there. The recent studies sent to the Ministry of Transport have shown that the construction of the bridge over the lake Garzon will guarantee the environmental protection.

What is on the other side of the lake Garzon?

Plenty of forests and many different species of birds and animals, natural reserves and a couple of super exclusive real estate projects such as Las Garzas and Las Carcavas.

Las Garzas Masterplan in Rocha, Uruguay

The project of Las Garzas

This new venture will be located in an area of ​​240 hectares on the other side of lake Garzon. It has a coastal front to the Atlantic Ocean of about a mile. There are approximately 500 individual lots averaging 2,000 square meters which can be built up to 35 % of the area costing from $133,000 up to 1.7M ocean front line. The project will be completed in approximate two years and by that time the bridge Garzon will already be finished. For information on how to obtain more info about Las Garzas, Las Carcavas or other communites in the area please contact us.